SWINDON is an important battleground which Labour is prepared to roll its sleeves up for, says shadow secretary Liam Byrne.

Mr Byrne, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, visited the town yesterday to campaign with Labour candidates and activists ahead of the local elections.

He joined Steve Wakefield and other Labour members in Toothill village centre for a leafleting session, before
going campaigning in the area with activists.

Speaking on the campaign trail he said: “We want to do well in Swindon and think it is an important area.

“We used to have two very good MPs here before the last general election and we want to reach out to the people in Swindon – the only way to do that is getting out here and rolling our sleeves up.

“It is really helping to get our message across Swindon. There is a high level of unemployment in the town which is putting a strain on benefits and leading to public sector cuts in the police and
home care for example.”

Toothill post office is a major talking point in the ward after it was announced it was due to shut next month for a “temporary” period.

“People rely on a local post office for vital services and they are the hub of the community as well as somewhere to draw your pension or post letters,” Mr Byrne said.

“The least local residents can expect from the council is to sit down with Tesco and try to come to some sort of arrangement that will benefit the whole community.”

Former Conservative councillor and mayor, Steve Wakefield, will be standing for Labour in Toothill on May 5, and Mr Byrne said he was pleased to support someone who he believes puts the community
first.

“The Labour party is a party that is looking to grow and we’ve got to gain voters and with people like Steve, who is someone with his feet on the ground, I am confident of this.”

“We want to have community activisits representing our party.”

Comments (5)

Ah the man when leaving his job in the treasury found it amusing to leave a note that there was no money left. I guess he's in the right place given between them the Tories and Labour have put each and every one of us into debt locally to the tune of £1000, add that to the £30k each for the national debt and didn't they do well.

I would like to ask a serious question though. How can politicians who are employed by us, and are 'working' be out and about in other Constituencies. Are these costs included in the candidates expenses, and why should we be paying for them to be canvassing, no matter which party it is.

Ah the man when leaving his job in the treasury found it amusing to leave a note that there was no money left. I guess he's in the right place given between them the Tories and Labour have put each and every one of us into debt locally to the tune of £1000, add that to the £30k each for the national debt and didn't they do well.
I would like to ask a serious question though. How can politicians who are employed by us, and are 'working' be out and about in other Constituencies. Are these costs included in the candidates expenses, and why should we be paying for them to be canvassing, no matter which party it is.Robfm

There is a horrible irony in the fact that Labour were largely responsible for the economic mess the country is still facing and yet they will likely end up doing very well in the May local elections.
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It's one of the reasons why many believe that Labour didn't particularly want to win the General Election last year. As it turned out, they got the best of both worlds as they can now sit back and blame both the Lib Dems and the Tories for all the country's problems... despite Labour being the cause of most of them.
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Still, the people of Swindon have voted wisely of late, so there's still much hope that people will not be taken in by Labour's current burblings.
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The current local council may well have made some dreadful decisions, but the last thing that will 'save us' is an inexperienced, clueless Labour council. We'll just end up back in that no-man's land we've suffered from for years, where the local council is at loggerheads with the two local MPs.
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And why does Derique Montaut always looks as though someone has died?

There is a horrible irony in the fact that Labour were largely responsible for the economic mess the country is still facing and yet they will likely end up doing very well in the May local elections.
.
It's one of the reasons why many believe that Labour didn't particularly want to win the General Election last year. As it turned out, they got the best of both worlds as they can now sit back and blame both the Lib Dems and the Tories for all the country's problems... despite Labour being the cause of most of them.
.
Still, the people of Swindon have voted wisely of late, so there's still much hope that people will not be taken in by Labour's current burblings.
.
The current local council may well have made some dreadful decisions, but the last thing that will 'save us' is an inexperienced, clueless Labour council. We'll just end up back in that no-man's land we've suffered from for years, where the local council is at loggerheads with the two local MPs.
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And why does Derique Montaut always looks as though someone has died?Mr Blackwell